


The House Party

by smolsarcasticraspberry



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Bisexual Shiro (Voltron), Earth-based AU, F/M, One-sided Keith/Shiro - Freeform, One-sided Lance/Allura, background lance/the friendzone, depictions of biphobia, shallura - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-20
Updated: 2019-08-20
Packaged: 2020-09-19 05:10:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,948
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20325637
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/smolsarcasticraspberry/pseuds/smolsarcasticraspberry
Summary: At Keith's 21st birthday party, both Lance and Keith are hoping to impress their long-standing crushes. But the crushes in question have other plans.





	The House Party

**Author's Note:**

> so. i wrote this fic mostly as a joke, but the shallura became too cute and my friends and enablers encouraged me to post it. this fic is about 30% shitpost and 50% a joke at Lance and Keith's expense, accompanied by some shallura adorableness because that's how i roll. with that being said, please be warned that neither Keith nor Lance will emerge from this story with honour and dignity intact.
> 
> **if you have some kind of deep-seated emotional attachment to either Keith or Lance, please don't read this.** this fic is not for you. _especially_ don't read it and then wah wah about it later when i specifically told you "don't read it, you won't enjoy it". this is your fair warning. if you're going to get upset at me laughing at Lance and Keith through the medium of fanfic, do us both a favour and just skip right past this and go read something else. Lady knows there's a metric fuckton of Lance- and/or Keith-centric fics out there that you can read to your heart's content.
> 
> this story is for shalluras, and for people upset about Shiro and Allura's treatment in canon who are looking for some catharsis and humour. test audiences assure me it's good for both those things. that being said, please enjoy responsibly.
> 
> in the spirit of late 90s-early 00s internet fandoms: flames will be left in the quintessence rift to melt. onwards!

## +

Tonight is the night.

Keith adjusts his tie in the mirror, and tweaks his hair. He wants to look neat, but not _too_ neat. He needs to look… mature. Grown-up. But not like he's _trying_ to look like an adult, just like he _is_ an adult. Effortless. So that Shiro walks in and is like 'wow, Keith, look at you!'.

He pulls his tie down a little bit. Ruffles up his hair. Perfect. Okay. He can do this. Tonight is the night he takes the next step with Shiro.

His mom walks in as he's getting his hair just right, and tuts at him. She plasters the strands back down, prompting a brief struggle of hands.

"Leave it, mom!" Keith protests. "Let me fix it!"

"You're making it messy," Krolia protests.

"That's how I want it!"

Krolia relents, and tucks a hand around Keith's shoulder as he takes in his reflection. New shirt (black), new tie (red), smart shoes. Hair looking… rakishly tussled, though he does say so himself. Perfect. Shiro's going to be so shocked. And then hopefully pleased, maybe a little conflicted? But that's okay. It's all part of the journey.

He glances at his mom in the mirror. They've been trying to get closer and mend things after some pretty rough years, and usually it's welcome, but she can take things too far sometimes. He's 21 now. He doesn't need his hair fixing up by his mother.

"You look all grown-up," Krolia says mistily, and Keith's heart soars. _Success_!

"Thanks, mom," he says with a grin.

She gives him a kiss on the temple. "I'm going to go downstairs and finish getting things ready. Remember, Shiro is in charge tonight."

Keith groans. "I'm not a kid, mom! He's not babysitting us."

"I know, I know," Krolia goes on. "But he's here to make sure things don't get out of hand, alright? So listen to him and don't let things get too crazy."

Keith rolls his eyes as she sweeps off downstairs. She can be such a helicopter at times. But tonight, she finally agreed to let him have the house to himself, and some friends over from the Garrison. A proper 21st birthday party, no parents around. The perfect opportunity to tell Shiro how he really feels.

"_'Shiro, we've been many things to each other',_" he says into the mirror. "_'You were a mentor, and then a friend. Now I'm hoping we could be something more.'_"

That works. Simple. To the point. He's rehearsed it numerous ways over the last few weeks, but this one seems best. Shiro might be taken aback at first, but he can't deny that Keith is an adult now. There's no reason they can't be together.

## +

Tonight's the night.

Lance shrugs on his blazer, and places the single Promise Rose in his inside pocket. It's actually just a normal rose, but the florist wrapped it up nicely in a pink bow and it has a sparkly "I Promise To Cherish You Always" card tied to it. Very nice, very understated. Very classy. Lance has it carefully wrapped in cellophane so it won't get damaged, concealed inside his jacket, waiting for the right moment.

He still can't quite believe Allura agreed to go on a date with him.

Well.

She agreed to go to Keith's birthday house party with him, but they're going _together_. He invited her and she said yes! That counts as a date. He's counting it.

He considers his appearance in the bedroom mirror. Nice blue shirt, his signature lucky colour. This blazer makes his shoulders look broader - Allura will be very impressed. Finish it off with matching pants and Converse, because he doesn't want to look too dressed up. He's a rebel! He wears trainers with a suit! How can Allura resist him?

Maybe she'll wear a nice dress. Really short, so he can see her thighs. He can't _wait_ to walk into Keith's house with Allura on his arm. He grins and winks at himself in the mirror, and fixes up his hair to the perfect level of ruffleage. Tonight, he'll get to hang out with Allura the whole time. He'll finally have a chance to impress her, and let her know how he really feels. And when the time is right, he'll whip out the Promise Rose and ask her to be his girlfriend. She's _bound_ to say yes.

"Vee!" he yells through his door. "Are you ready?!"

"Don't fucking yell at me, you little brat!" Veronica yells back. Ugh. She's already killing the mood. Why does this party even need chaperones anyway? It's mostly going to be older cadets from the Garrison, and they're all over 18. Yeah, yeah, there's going to be beers and people will be drinking, blah blah. He just hopes Veronica can take a hint and mind her own business as soon as Allura turns up. This is Lance's night to shine.

## +

Tonight is going to be boring as hell.

Allura scrabbles around in her toiletries bag for a lip balm, and sprays a little perfume on her wrists. Romelle lies on the bed behind her, flicking through an Earth magazine and making faces at the bizarre gossip that seems to keep humans so entertained.

"Why are you going to this party, anyway?" Romelle asks.

Allura throws the lip balm into her purse, along with a phone charger. She shrugs.

"Mrs Yurak asked me. Besides, I'm trying to experience all aspects of Earth culture whilst we're here."

"But you're going _with_ Lance?"

"He offered to come and pick me up."

Which is rather odd, now Allura comes to think back on it. Humans have rules about driving whilst consuming alcohol - the local poison-of-choice for lowering social inhibitions - and according to Allura's understanding of these things, this is a party at which Lance will want to have a few beers. It seems odd he would offer to be the one driving. Mind you, the whole invitation was a little strange to begin with. They were all standing outside the Garrison, and Allura was talking to Mrs Yurak about Keith's upcoming birthday party, and Lance chimed in with 'oh you should come Allura, do you want to come?' and Mrs Yurak was like 'yes please do, you can keep an eye on the younger ones' and. Well. It's rude to turn down an invitation.

Lance seemed oddly excited about it, though.

"Ugh," Romelle groans. "You know it's mostly going to be adolescents. _Earth_ adolescents. They're like _children_."

Romelle is right about that. They've been on Earth six months, as part of the Human-Altean cultural exchange programme, and Allura is still getting used to how humans _work_, exactly. They age differently to Alteans. But one thing she has noticed is that the adolescents often behave like loud, over-confident toddlers. It's fascinating, if a little draining. She and Romelle are both attached to the Garrison as part of the programme, so they get to meet plenty of cadets, and Allura has often wondered why such unpredictable young humans are allowed to partake in serious scientific and military training.

But part of her role here is to study cultural differences. It's all great data.

"It won't be that bad," Allura tells Romelle. "I'm just going to go and see what a house party is like. This is the first opportunity I've had to observe how humans celebrate days of birth."

Romelle sits up, and puts the magazine aside. She gives Allura a stern look.

"'Lura," she says. "Promise me you're not going to fuck this Lance kid."

She's _definitely_ not, but the opportunity to wind up Romelle is too good to miss. She affects a thoughtful expression.

"I could, couldn't I?" she muses. "As part of my research."

"Please don't." Romelle grimaces. "I know I'm always saying you need a rebound after Lo--"

"Don't say his name," Allura cautions. Her dirtbag manipulative ex on Altea is one of the reasons she was so keen to come on this sabbatical to Earth in the first place. A long-term posting, lightyears away from his pathetic pleas to take her back? Just what she needs. Romelle's advice that she should fuck one or more of the locals to help her 'get over it all' has thus far been resisted. That's taking immersive research a little _too_ far.

"Fine, fine," Romelle says. "But please don't sleep with the alien kids."

"He's technically old enough, by human standards."

"Allura!"

Allura laughs, and sticks her tongue out at Romelle, who throws a pillow at her.

"What do you take me for?" Allura asks. "Of course I'm not going to sleep with him. I promise I am not going to have sex of any kind with Lance. Not even close."

"Good. Your rebound needs to be someone epic. Someone amazing who can sweep you off your feet and make you forget that asshole ever existed."

Allura gives her a fond smile, and finishes packing the last of her things in her purse. Romelle is the kind of friend who thinks no one is good enough for Allura, and at times like these - fresh out of a particularly cruel heartbreak - Romelle's concern is touching. It reminds Allura that she doesn't have to settle for second best.

"Small chance of that at this party, then," she says. "They're all kids, remember?"

Romelle follows her as she goes downstairs to wait for Lance's promised ride to the party. Their host family on Earth is two kind older women and their kids. The eldest boy, Hunk, is another cadet at the Garrison. He sits in the living room on the sofa as Allura strolls down the stairs and slips on her pumps.

"You look smart, Hunk," she says with a smile. He's wearing a rather nice button-down, and has his hair back in a ponytail.

"Thanks," he says shyly. "I hope the party won't be too boring for you."

"Of course not," Allura says. "I'll have you to talk to if things get really desperate."

He answers her wink with a chuckle, and goes back to browsing through his phone. Allura leans on the kitchen counter and chats to Hunk's moms whilst they wait for Lance. It's not long before a car pulls into the drive, and they make their goodbyes and head outside. It quickly becomes clear what Lance meant when he offered to pick them up - Veronica is the one driving the car, and Lance is in the back seat. Allura perks up immediately. If Veronica is coming to the party too, it won't be so bad after all.

## +

Lance sits in the back seat, tapping his foot impatiently. This is it. He's got it all planned out. Vee's driving, so he can fully enjoy the party. Allura will sit next to him in the back, and he can talk to her a bit before they get there - not too much, not with Veronica in the car with them - but maybe if things go really well, he can reach over and take her hand. Maybe she'll blush a little bit as she shyly slips her fingers between his… Lance sighs wistfully. Oh yeah. This is the perfect set-up.

The front door opens. Allura emerges, grinning broadly, followed by Hunk. It's fine, that's fine, all to plan. Now if he can just…

But Allura bounds up to the front passenger side and pulls the door open, and slips into the seat next to Veronica.

"Hey, Vee!" she says. "I didn't know you were coming to this!"

"Babysitting duty," Veronica says, with a wink at Lance, and Allura laughs.

"Did Mrs Yurak drag you into this too?" Veronica asks, as Hunk climbs into the back seat and Lance fumes in silence.

"Well… yes. But I also wanted to see what an Earth house party is like."

"Rowdy," Veronica says. "Especially when it's this lot."

Allura chuckles, and glances over her shoulder at the back seat.

"Hey, Lance," she says with a smile and a nod. And with that, she turns back to chatting with Veronica as the car pulls out of the drive and they head to Keith's house.

"Why are you wearing a suit?" Hunk asks.

Lance glares at him, and sinks down in his seat. This is all going wrong. For a start, Allura isn't even wearing a dress - just some jeans and a top. She didn't even get dressed up! And now Veronica is spoiling everything before they even get to the party. Why did she have to call this babysitting? Allura's going to think he's a kid!

Okay. This is fine. They're off to a rocky start, but he can pull this back. Let them all get out of the car and that's when the _real_ date begins.

## +

"Keith!" Krolia calls. "Shiro's here!"

Keith darts out of his room and hurries down the stairs, heart pounding. Alright. Here we go. He spots Shiro in the living room with his mom, hands in his pockets, chatting away. Keith pauses on the bottom step to pluck up some courage. Shiro looks like he just came from the gym: his hair is damp and pushed back anyhow, and he's wearing black sweatpants and a black t-shirt with the pink-purple-blue bands of a bi flag on it. A throwback from his bi phase, before he settled down to dating guys.

Keith wipes his sweaty palms on his thighs. This is the first time he's really seeing Shiro in a while, because Shiro's spent the last six months on a lunar base, and they've only talked on video calls. He saw Shiro briefly when he landed, but that was at the Garrison, everything was busy, Shiro had to go through Medical… this is different. It's the first chance they're getting to just hang out and chill.

Shiro looks up and spots him, and Keith clears his throat and crosses into the living room.

"Keith!" Shiro says. He clasps his hand and pulls him into the familiar bear-hug that got Keith through many tough days in his Garrison training.

"Hey, Shiro," Keith says. He tries to keep his voice low.

"Happy 21st!" Shiro says. He punches Keith jovially on the arm a couple of times, and then ruffles his hair whilst Keith protests. Krolia joins in, with an arm around Keith's shoulders.

"Doesn't he look so grown-up?" she says.

"I don't know how you wrestled him into a tie," Shiro chuckles.

"Oh, he picked it," Krolia says, as if Keith isn't right there. "I'm finally weaning him off those ratty t-shirts!"

"Mom, I thought you were leaving," Keith grinds out through gritted teeth.

"I am, baby, don't worry," she says. "Shiro, sweetheart, could you put my overnight bag in the car for me? I'm going to Colleen's to get wine-drunk and bitch about the neighbours."

"Sounds fun, Mrs Yurak," Shiro says, as he picks up Krolia's bag.

"Shiro, please, you have got to start calling me Krolia one of these days!"

Keith shoves his hands in his pockets and scowls. Of course his mom has to hang around ruining everything. This is supposed to be his night. His friends will come over, and then he's going to have a couple of beers and build up some courage and then… _then_ he's going to get Shiro alone and tell him that he's not a little kid anymore. They can finally give into the feelings they've both been holding back.

If only his mom would _hurry up_ and _get lost_.

The doorbell chimes, and Krolia gives Keith a sweet smile.

"That'll be the first of the guests," she says. "Why don't you go and let them in?"

## +

Veronica pulls into the driveway of Mrs Yurak's house just as a few other cars start to turn into the property. As they step out, Allura takes the opportunity to soak in the house and surrounding grounds.

She's never been here before. Like many of the families in town, the Yuraks are connected to the Garrison - most of the town's business and social life seems to revolve around it, with good reason. Between the military branch, the science wing, and the space exploration programme, there's plenty of work to keep the local residents employed and busy. Not to mention all the other businesses that thrive off such a huge, well-paid presence in their midst. Most of the Garrison families are well-off, and their houses are spectacular.

The Yurak residence is a stylish two-storey home in white stone, with the kind of fancy pillars that Allura has come to recognise as ornamentation and not structural support. It's fascinating, really, how the humans of Earth allude back to earlier eras with their design choices, as a mark of status and wealth. The house has a sweeping driveway and front lawn, and lanterns spaced at intervals to cast a warm, yellowish glow that illuminates the twilight air. A few of the Garrison cadets climb out of cars and head towards the front door, and Allura recognises some familiar faces: Kinkade, Nadia, James… Interesting. Romelle was correct that this form of socialising is mostly done with peers of the same age cohort. She pulls out her phone and makes a note of it.

A cough beside her makes her glance around. Lance stands next to her, fidgeting nervously with the sleeves of his jacket and shifting from foot to foot. He's wearing a suit in the Earth style, but it seems a little big for his scrawny frame. Perhaps it's a human fashion.

"Shall we, m'lady?" he asks. He holds out his elbow, and stands there waiting for Allura's response.

She's been on Earth six months. She knows a bit about human courtship rituals at this point. Is this one of those? Surely Lance doesn't seriously think he'd have that kind of chance with her, does he? Best not to give him any encouragement, just in case.

"I can manage, thank you," she says sweetly. She catches up to Veronica, and they enter the house together, leaving Lance to trail along behind.

The front doors open up onto a marble-floored hallway featuring a grand staircase, and a set of double doors opening onto the main living room. Already, a gaggle of younger humans are hanging around on the seats, drinking from bottles - the famous 'beer' so beloved of Earthlings as a means of inducing altered mental states for recreational purposes. Music plays in the background - something with a lively beat, the lyrics muffled behind the chatter of voices. On the other side of the hall, another doorway opens into a room where someone is setting up some party games. A pleasant bustle hangs in the air; a sense of festivity and celebration, of kids getting ready to cut loose.

"So this is a house party?" Allura asks.

Veronica nods. "What do you think so far? It hasn't really gotten started yet."

"It seems fun."

"Wait until the cadets start barfing in the potted plants," Veronica mutters. "Come on. Let's go say hi to Mrs Yurak."

Allura follows Veronica towards the back of the house, in search of their host. To her surprise, Lance trails after them, looking lost. Surely he's here to socialise with his friends? How odd.

They find Mrs Yurak in the kitchen with her coat on, having a final talk with Keith before she leaves them all alone to party the night away. Keith looks rather disgruntled, but that's normal for him. Mrs Yurak's face lights up as she spots Veronica and Allura walk in.

"Ah, so glad you made it!" she greets them warmly, giving each of them a hug, and Allura makes sure to follow human protocol and compliment her on her home.

"Thank you both so much for coming," Mrs Yurak goes on. "I worry about this lot being home alone. Thank goodness there'll be some real adults around the place!"

"Is it just us?" Veronica asks.

"Oh, no, dear. Shiro is here too. Well, he's here somewhere. You'll see him around."

"Shiro?" Allura asks. The name is not immediately familiar.

"I don't think you've met him," Mrs Yurak says. "He was appointed as Keith's mentor at the Garrison, when Keith was… struggling."

Allura gives her a polite smile. Keith's behavioural problems are not unknown to her; nor is it a secret that he was almost kicked out of the Garrison multiple times. Veronica is good for all sorts of gossip in that regard. But she says nothing in front of Mrs Yurak.

"Shiro's nice, you'll like him," Veronica says.

"Oh, he's lovely," Mrs Yurak gushes. "He was a great influence in Keith's life when we lost his father. He became almost an older brother to him. Really went above and beyond."

"He's not my _brother_," Keith mutters. "We're friends."

"Yes, dear, but you know what I mean," Mrs Yurak says breezily.

Allura looks from Mrs Yurak's face to her son's. Keith appears to be sulking about something, and is clearly itching for his mother to leave. In fact, as Mrs Yurak picks up her keys and says her goodbyes, Keith perks up considerably. Clearly, parental presence is viewed as a detriment to the proper enjoyment of this kind of party.

As Mrs Yurak lets herself out, waving cheerily at the chaperones, Lance taps Allura on the arm.

"Do you want a beer, Allura?" he asks.

Allura bites back a laugh. He seems to be trying to make his voice lower for some reason. What a strange boy.

"I'm not supposed to be drinking, Lance," she says sternly.

"We should find Shiro," Veronica suggests. "I haven't seen him since he went to the moon."

"He was on the moon?" Allura asks, suddenly interested. The Garrison has a lunar colony, which she's heard much about, but so far hasn't been able to visit. If Shiro was there, he might be able to tell her all about it.

"Oh, sure," Veronica says. "Come on, let's go find him. You can have _one_ beer, Lance," she adds, wagging a stern finger at her brother, and Allura smothers a smile.

## +

Shiro's not a huge fan of house parties. He's a little too old to be doing shots and getting wasted, and the crowd tonight is mostly young cadets experiencing their first beers and being really immature about it. But after six months on a bland lunar base, he's a little more forgiving of the vibe here. At least it's a party. It beats work. Besides, it's nice to check in on Keith and make sure he hasn't dropped out of the Garrison or spontaneously developed a drug habit since Shiro went away.

He carries Krolia's bag out to her car, and then he helps get things set up in the living room, and fixes the sound system, and then he loads some drinks into the fridge and lays out the snacks, and by the time the guests start arriving he's in the family room moving tables out of the way to make space for dancing. He hears Krolia shout 'goodbye Shiro!' and the door closing, and goes back to pushing the chairs aside.

A voice behind him makes him turn. Veronica stands in the doorway, and is that… is that _Allura_?

"Shiro! Hey!" Veronica greets him with a warm hug. "I don't think you've met Allura?"

It _is_ her. Shiro knows her by sight - she's one of the highest ranking Alteans to come to Earth, and she's been on the news several times. They've also met precisely once before, but she's probably forgotten about it.

"Nice to meet you," he says. He extends a hand, and she takes it carefully. He's only ever seen her in rather formal Altean clothes, but tonight she's dressed more casually in a pair of dark skinny jeans and a cute off-the-shoulder top in ivory lace. Her hair is pulled back into one huge poofy ponytail near the top of her head. Normally, she looks regal and refined. Tonight, she looks… pretty.

"I'm sorry… have we met before?" she asks, and a tiny spark of excitement ignites in Shiro's chest. She _does_ remember.

"Yes, at the Garrison," he says. "I was there when the Altean delegation arrived. I met all the dignitaries. I was the one nerding out about meeting aliens."

Her expression progresses through confusion (cute) to recognition (also cute) and finally to a delighted grin (adorable) as she places him.

"Of course!" she says, her eyes sparkling. "You were wearing uniform. That's why you look so different. It's… Takesh something, isn't it? Your name?"

"Takashi," he corrects her. "Shirogane Takashi. But you can call me Shiro. Everyone does."

He gives her a warm grin, and Allura lets go of his hand and tucks her hair behind her ears. Her cheeks seem a little pink, and Shiro tries not to get carried away with fanciful notions that she's blushing at him. Of course she's not. _Get it together, Takashi_.

"It's nice to see you again," Allura says, with another sweet smile. "Veronica said you were on the moon?"

"I was, yeah," Shiro says. "I left right after you guys arrived, actually. I guess that's why we never bumped into each other again."

"What was it like?" Allura asks. "I've heard that the Garrison has a lunar base, but no one will give me the details. I'm dying to get up there and take a look."

"It would probably seem really primitive to you."

"Well… perhaps. But that's what makes it so fascinating."

She gazes up at him with absolute sincerity, and Shiro fights back a smile, with minimal success. Being on the receiving end of her undivided attention is like being pulled into the orbit of a star. He has the sudden urge to spend the entire night telling her every trivial detail about the lunar base, just to see her eyes light up with that captivating spark.

The first time they met, they barely had time to say hello to each other before she was whisked down the line to meet someone far more important. At a distance, she's a fascinating and elegant representative of an alien species - everything that Shiro has dreamed of meeting and knowing. Up close, she's fucking _adorable_. Her eyes sparkle pink and blue, and her hair looks like a silver cloud, and she seems genuinely fascinated by his mission to the moon.

In all honesty, he took the posting to get some distance on a bad break-up. But Ryou keeps telling him the only way to move on is to start talking to other people, and he could do a lot worse than a pretty alien who keeps smiling at him. He gives in.

"I can tell you all about it, if you really want," he offers. "But I need to keep an eye on the riffraff. But we can walk and talk, if you like?"

She grins up at him, clearly delighted, and the last shreds of his resistance melt away. What the hell. He's stuck at this party all night. He might as well enjoy it.

## +

The party is in full swing, and Keith makes sure to mingle and talk to people. He doesn't want to look like a friendless loser on his 21st birthday. Especially not with Shiro here.

But he really wants to get Shiro alone, at some point.

There's a snag, however. That alien - Allura - is monopolising Shiro.

Keith scowls. He goes in the kitchen - he sees Shiro talking to Allura. He goes into the games room - he finds Shiro laughing at some clearly-unfunny-joke that Allura is making. He goes into the living room - and there's Shiro, head dipped down to speak close to Allura's ear, to be heard over the music, and she's smiling and leaning into it.

What the _fuck_.

Lance is here too, being obnoxiously loud about how well he can handle the alcohol. Great. It's Lance's fault Allura is even here in the first place. Stupid prick.

Keith mooches out into the hallway, nursing his third beer. He sits down on the bench and watches through the living room door as Allura pokes playfully at Shiro's chest, and he grins and snags her finger.

This is stupid. Shiro's _gay_. Allura is clearly wasting her time, and she's about to get her heart seriously broken, but why does Shiro have to humour her like this? Just tell her to back off! Ugh.

"Whatcha sulking for, birthday boy?"

Keith glances over at Pidge, who has turned up tonight in a suit and a fedora. She takes a swig of her beer and plonks down next to him, without being invited.

"You're too young for beer," Keith tells her.

She scoffs. "Yeah right."

Keith pointedly ignores her, and goes back to watching Shiro and Allura. Allura will have to leave at some point. Even if it's just to pee. Aliens pee, right? He can bide his time.

"You trying to stare her to death?" Pidge asks, and Keith glares at her.

"I don't get why Shiro has to talk to her all night," he mutters. "She won't leave him alone!"

"I don't think he _wants_ to be left alone," Pidge says. "She's an alien. Of course he's going to spend all night talking to her. Look at him. He's having the time of his life."

"So she's an alien. Big deal." Keith takes another swig of beer. "Aliens are old news by now."

"Dude, Shiro's been obsessed with aliens since he was a kid," Pidge says. "They're never gonna be 'old news' to him."

"Wait, really?" Keith has never heard that before. Sure, Shiro is fascinated by the arrival of the Alteans, but so was everyone else.

"Sure. Why do you think he joined the Garrison in the first place? He wants to go to space and meet aliens. Or did you think he just sprang fully-formed from an egg the minute you needed someone to bust you out of juvie?"

Keith chokes on his beer, and looks at Pidge in alarm.

"That's not - I never--"

"Relax, everyone knows that story." Pidge kicks back on the bench, and crosses one foot over the other. "Shiro had a life before you arrived, you know. He's been friends with my brother for years. They're both completely obsessed with alien life and making first contact."

"Okay, fine, but… at my birthday party? Really?"

Pidge arches an eyebrow at him. "What did you expect? Let the man talk to someone his own age, Christ."

Keith bristles, and sulks back in his seat. In the living room, Allura is playing with her hair whilst Shiro rests a hand around her waist and leans down to talk to her, his face lit up and a little flushed. Is he drinking? He's not supposed to be getting drunk with aliens. Not at Keith's party.

"I just don't think it's very polite for my friend to come to my party and then barely talk to me," Keith mutters.

"Dude, he's your mentor," Pidge says. "You met him in the big sibs programme. Sure, he's nice to you, but that's his _job_."

"Oh, what the fuck do you know?" Keith snaps. "We're friends! It doesn't matter how we met!"

Pidges eyebrows disappear up behind her scruffy fringe, and she takes a long, meaningful swig of her beer.

"Sure dude. Whatever."

"Fuck off."

Keith scowls, and folds his arms over his chest. Pidge knows nothing. Shiro isn't a mentor. Not anymore. They're friends, and after tonight they'll be something more, and Pidge can go suck a cactus for all he cares.

"Do you know why Shiro ended up in the mentor programme in the first place?" Pidge asks. She smirks at him, and pushes her glasses up her face. "I have all the deep Holt-Shirogane lore, you know. I can tell you."

"He just wanted to support people."

Pidge throws her head back and laughs. She kicks her heels against the floor and exaggeratedly wipes tears from her eyes, as if this is all hilariously funny.

"Oh, buddy," she chuckles. "He joined cos he had to. Shiro got in _loads_ of trouble at the Garrison. He was a complete wildcard. He was about_ ~this close_ to getting permanently grounded. But he was the best pilot the Garrison has ever seen, and Iverson didn't want to let him go. So he stuck him in the mentor programme as a form of punishment. Stroke of genius, really. Shiro needed to see that people would look up to him. Being a mentor forced him to think about his own behaviour, and how he was damaging his chances of achieving his dreams. That little bit of responsibility really straightened him out."

Keith stares at her, incredulous. "There's no way that's true."

"He told me himself," Pidge shrugs. "I told you. He's been friends with Matt forever. I've known him most of my life."

The sound of laughter rises out of the lounge, and Keith looks over to see Allura giggling, her hand on Shiro's chest, and Shiro still with an arm around her waist, looking comfortable and relaxed and happy. _Seriously_. All Keith's plans for tonight are going up in smoke, and it's all Allura's fault. Why is Shiro stringing her along like that? It's getting ridiculous.

Pidge stands up and stretches, and waves her empty bottle at Keith.

"I'm gonna get a refill," she says. "You gonna sit there all night and stare wistfully at Shiro?"

"What? I'm not--"

"Relax," Pidge chuckles. "I'm sure he's hot, if you're into dudes. You're probably out of luck, though."

She nods at Shiro, where he stands pressed up close to Allura. Keith shakes his head.

"It's not like that. Shiro's gay."

Pidge snorts. "Sure he is. The guy in a bi flag t-shirt getting handsy with the hot alien chick is gay. Right."

She shakes her head and wanders off towards the kitchen, leaving Keith alone on the bench.

## +

In her time on Earth, Allura has observed that human physiology is remarkably similar to that of Alteans. Right down to the most fundamental biological details, like similarities in sexual dimorphism, and secondary sex characteristics, and speech patterns, and small details of body language… The likeness was so pronounced that when the Alteans first discovered the existence of humans, it prompted wild academic speculation about where they possibly could have come from. Was Earth a lost Altean colony? Convergent evolution? A common ancestor, lost to the mists of time?

The striking similarities were part of the reason the Altean science delegations agreed to make contact with Earth in the first place. Under ordinary circumstances, they would leave such a primitive civilisation alone until they developed advanced space travel. But the biologists of Altea concluded that humans were a cousin-species to Alteans, and worth studying up close and in detail. Hence, the diplomatic mission to make first contact, and Allura's extended placement on Earth.

Allura knows all this on an academic level. Of course it's possible for humans to be attractive to Alteans, and vice versa. It makes perfect scientific sense.

The _theory_ is absolutely solid.

The _reality_ is currently leaning down to speak with her, one hand on her waist, his breath warm against the tip of her ear as he recounts a funny story about his training at the Garrison.

Shiro is so completely her type it's almost ridiculous. The only thing - literally the _only_ thing she doesn't like about him - is his ears. Everything else is varying shades of perfection. How is this man even real?

She vaguely remembers meeting him on her first day on Earth, when she met dozens of humans and tried to remember names and faces. But that was at the Garrison, where everyone was very well-behaved and polite. Here, they're on down-time, and Shiro is making the absolute most of it. They've talked about moon bases. They've talked about space travel. He listened, enraptured, as she told him about the ship that brought her to Earth, and about Altea. And now he's making her laugh with stories of his escapades in flight school. She's barely said three words to anyone else the entire party, but she's still having the time of her life. She's nowhere close to being bored of him. If anything, she wishes all these pesky kids would leave them alone, so they could keep talking in peace, without having to worry about watching over anyone else.

"Alright, your turn," he says. "I've told you my most embarrassing training stories. Now I want to hear some of yours."

"You assume I ever embarrassed myself," Allura says sweetly. "How do you know I wasn't the perfect student?"

He slides just a little closer to her. His arm has been resting around her waist for the last half hour, keeping her near him, and she's greatly enjoying the proximity. His hand finds the gap between her top and the waistband of her jeans, and his fingers trace gentle lines, skin-to-skin, and she bites her lip and tries to hide how flustered it makes her. Such a tiny contact, but his touch sends an irresistible warmth flooding through her body. His other arm is an advanced prosthetic, and a part of her is itching to ask him about it and offer to take a look and compare it to Altean designs. But she holds back. It would be rude to bring it up. She doesn’t want to kill this delicious mood.

"I think you got into all sorts of trouble at school," Shiro says. "You look the type."

He smirks at her, a delightfully playful expression that makes his face light up from within. Allura tilts her head to the side and pokes him in the chest.

"I could take offence at that, you know," she says.

"I don't know why you would. I mean it as a compliment."

That makes her laugh, and she takes the opportunity to lean into him slightly and rest her hand on his chest.

"You just want to believe that everyone was as badly behaved as you," she teases.

That wicked, delightful grin returns. "No. I want to believe that you, specifically, Miss Very Prim and Proper Diplomat, were a wild child who got into trouble."

He boops her nose with his finger as he says it. The metal hand feels warm to the touch, and it's covered in a thin, artificial skin that partially conceals the mechanisms within. Allura wonders if he's self-conscious about it. He seems perfectly comfortable touching her with his left hand, but not so much with the right, and she longs to tell him it's fine, it doesn't bother her, she wants him to put both hands fully on her and then maybe a whole bunch of other body parts as well.

Maybe she can build up to it with some meaningful hints.

"I can't really talk about that kind of thing here," she says, gesturing at the room full of cadets getting rowdily drunk around her. "I have a reputation to maintain."

"Could you talk about it in the kitchen where there's snacks?" Shiro asks.

Allura holds back a grin at his hopeful expression. Great stars, he really is adorable. She's starting to think that Romelle is right. She should fuck her way through some locals. Specifically she should fuck _this_ local, very thoroughly, for science purposes. Preferably more than once.

"Possibly," she says.

"Then let's go." Shiro withdraws the arm from her waist, but only so he can hold out his elbow to her. So it _is_ a courting ritual. She loops her arm through his and lets him lead her away to the kitchen.

This party is turning out to be amazing after all.

## +

This party _sucks_.

Lance sits on the couch in the living room, gearing up for a good, solid sulk. This is some _bullshit_. He's supposed to be on a date with Allura, but he's barely spoken to her all night. Shiro keeps pestering her. Just because she's an alien and the guy is obsessed with aliens. He won't leave her alone! Lance can tell Allura is hating it. He can see it in her eyes. Oh, she's being polite and pretending to smile, but it's clearly all fake. Why would she be having such a good time when she can't even talk to the guy she's on a date with?

It's not like Shiro has anything to gain from talking to her, either. The dude's gay. What's the point?

Lance huffs into his beer, and sinks further into the sofa. He's currently squashed up next to Hunk and Kinkade, who've finished several rounds of a dance game on the console and are now loudly telling each other bad jokes. Around them, the party is in full swing. The Garrison runs a tight schedule, and the cadets don't get many chances to really cut loose and enjoy themselves, and as a result everyone's making the most of the house party to blow off some steam. Keith has wandered around talking to people, looking as sour as ever, which didn't do much for Lance's mood. Shiro is only here because he's Keith's mentor-brother-whatever. So in a way, this is all Keith's fault.

It's ridiculous. Lance grabbed three shots for some liquid courage when he first got here, and when he looked around Allura was already all tied up with Shiro and his boring space stories. Everywhere he looks now, he sees Allura and Shiro. He goes to the kitchen for snacks - Shiro is pestering Allura for details about her space ship or her planet or whatever. He goes to the lounge - there's Shiro again, all over Allura, telling her shitty jokes that she pretends to laugh at. The woman is clearly trapped! What the hell!?

Right now, Allura is across the room from him, _still_ talking to Shiro. Shiro is pinning her in place with an arm on her waist, and trying vainly to draw a genuine laugh out of her. Allura clearly needs rescuing. This is fucking _bullshit_.

Kinkade nudges him on the shoulder, and Lance looks over.

"Sorry it didn't work out with your hot date," Kinkade says. "Looks like you struck out."

"What are you talking about?" Lance demands. "I didn't strike out. I just can't get a word in cos Shiro's been pestering her this entire time!"

"I dunno dude, looks like she's enjoying being pestered," Kinkade says mildly.

"I think she'd let him pester her all night, if you know what I mean," Hunk adds, with a wiggle of his eyebrows.

"_'Oh Shiro, I have something right here you can pester'_," Kinkade says, in a very bad impression of Allura's voice, and Hunk bursts out laughing.

"_'Pester me with your big--'_"

"That's not gonna happen!" Lance snaps. Several people turn to look at his outburst, and he subsides into the sofa, cheeks burning. "Shiro's gay. He's just doing the friendly gay thing."

"He's literally wearing a bi flag on his t-shirt," Hunk points out.

Lance scoffs. "That's just a fancy way of saying he's gay. No one's _really_ bisexual."

"Oh my god, dude, stop talking," Kinkade mutters. "If you're that bothered, why don't you go and break them up?"

"Maybe I will!" Lance says.

"Good luck tearing her away from Shiro," Kinkade snickers. "She's gonna knock you back so hard you fall out the window."

Hunk snorts, and when Lance glares at him, he shrugs apologetically.

"I just think you should let it go," Hunk says. "Allura's clearly into Shiro. Just drop it."

"No, I will not drop it, Hunk. She's my date. We're supposed to be here _together_. I'm going to ask her to go steady with me. Then you'll see."

Lance glances around for Allura, and sees her headed towards the kitchen, arm-in-arm with Shiro. He curses under his breath and gets up and follows them. The kitchen is mostly deserted, and Lance hovers in the doorway as he tries to figure out a way to pry Allura out of Shiro's unworthy hands.

"You know, I haven't tried beer yet," Allura says, her voice carrying over the length of the kitchen. She's at the far end, and Lance can make out the shape of her as she leans on the counter, still talking to Shiro.

"That's probably for the best," Shiro says. "This stuff's pretty cheap and nasty. What about wine? Mrs Yurak keeps some nice bottles in the cellar."

What the _fuck_. She said she wasn't supposed to be drinking!

"I've heard of wine," Allura's face lights up. Great. Just great. "Do you think she would mind if we tried some?"

"Nah, I'll make it up to her," Shiro says. "Listen. Why don't you grab us some snacks, and I'll get a bottle, and I'll meet you back here? I'm dying to hear these scandalous school stories of yours."

He puts his hands on either side of her, braced on the kitchen counter, and leans down over her. Ugh. What is he _doing_? Allura is clearly too terrified to protest, poor girl. Why can't Shiro take a hint! Thankfully, he stands up and heads towards the cellar, and Lance spots his opening. Now's his chance.

He shoves his hands into his pockets and wanders into the kitchen with feigned nonchalance. Shiro disappears into the hallway and down the stairs to the cellar, and Lance saunters up to where Allura is still leaning on the counter, selecting snacks from the food laid out on the sideboard.

"Oh, hey Allura," Lance says.

She glances up at him. "Oh, hi Lance. Did you need something?"

She looks back at the snack table, and Lance hesitates. How's he going to approach this? 'Blink twice if you need rescuing?'

"How are you finding the party?" he asks instead.

"It's great!" Allura says. "I'm having a wonderful time."

"You're uh. Talking to Shiro?"

"He's been telling me all about his time on the lunar station. It's really quite fascinating."

"Oh yeah, Shiro can just go on and on," Lance says. He watches for Allura's reaction, but she just hums under her breath and continues loading up a plate with various types of food. Maybe he should try the direct approach. Like a gallant knight.

"You know, if you need rescuing…" he says. Allura ignores him.

"I mean, if you want to talk to someone else for a bit, and you know, you can't get rid of Shiro… I could… I mean. We could go sit in the living room if you want?"

"No, thank you, Lance," Allura says, without looking up.

"I get it, you want to be polite, but you don't have to spend all night talking to the guy."

"It's fine, Lance, I want to." Allura finally turns to face him, and offers him a smile. "I enjoy talking to him. He's a lot of fun."

"You know, we could have--"

"LANCE!" Kinkade's yell from the next room cuts him off. Lance grits his teeth and tries again, but now both Kinkade and Hunk are shouting for him to come back and play games with them.

"You should go hang out with your friends," Allura says kindly. "Thank you for coming to check on me. But I'm having a great time, honestly."

Lance opens and closes his mouth, but there's no dignified way out of this. He turns on his heel and stalks back to the living room to give the guys a piece of his mind.

## +

Keith is still contemplating the disaster this party has become, when Shiro comes out of the kitchen and disappears through the door that leads to the cellar steps. Keith sits up on the bench immediately, his heart racing. This is it. This is his chance. He can catch Shiro in the cellar, alone.

He gets up and hurries down the steps after Shiro, into the relative cool of the cellar. It's a spacious room lined with storage cabinets and racks of wine bottles, and as Keith reaches the bottom of the stairs he spots Shiro selecting a bottle from one of the shelves.

"Oh, hey Keith," Shiro says, as he notices his presence. "Allura wanted to try wine. Can you let your mom know I'll pay her back for this?"

He hefts the wine bottle in his hand, and heads back towards the stairs without waiting for a reply. At this rate, he'll be up out of the cellar without even asking what Keith is doing down here. How can he be this rude? Running around after Allura, doing everything for her… She should honestly back off. This is getting ridiculous.

"Hey - Shiro?" Keith says. Shiro pauses, his foot on the bottom step, and looks over his shoulder at Keith.

"What's up, buddy?" he asks.

"Uhm. Well. We've known each other a long time," Keith begins. "And I was just thinking. About… I'm not a kid anymore, you know? I'm a grown-up, I'm--"

"Oh yeah, I can tell you're not a kid, cos you're maudlin drunk right now."

Keith blinks, suddenly derailed. "What? No, I'm not--"

"Look, it's fine. It can take you like that the first time. But I don't need to hear the speech about how you look up to me like a brother. I already know that."

Shiro gives him a cheeky wink, and turns and bounds up the stairs, two at a time, leaving Keith floundering in the cellar.

## +

Shiro finds Allura in the kitchen, putting the finishing touches to a plate of party food, and looking rather proud of herself. He stops for a second just to drink her in. She's incredible. Not only is she mind-blowingly cute, she's also endless fun to be around. She's smart, she's funny, she delights in teasing him in the most adorable ways… she's perfect. Literal, actual perfection. In the few hours they've spent together at this party, he's gone from a superficial admiration to a full-blown, all-consuming crush on her, and something tells him nothing is going to shake this.

The best part is, she seems to like him back.

"Hey," he says. She turns around, and her face lights up - really lights up, eyes wide, lips pulled into a warm smile - and she tucks her hair behind her ear again (too cute) and gestures at the plate of food.

"I got the snacks," she says. "Is that the wine?"

Shiro holds up the bottle, and closes the few paces between them. "Sure is. We're supposed to drink it out of fancy wine glasses, but… let's stick with disposable cups for now."

Allura giggles, and passes him two of the red party cups from the sideboard. She looks up at him expectantly, but Shiro hesitates.

There's a bunch of rowdy kids in the next room. They've been in and out of the kitchen for snacks all night. Veronica is about the place, keeping a lid on things, and Kinkade and Hunk are pretty sensible. And right now, Shiro has the selfish desire to be alone with Allura - really alone, in a place where people aren't going to come wandering in looking for Doritos and beers.

"Do you want to go and sit in the garden?" he asks. "It's a nice night."

"We're supposed to be babysitting the kids," she points out.

"Let Veronica take care of things for a bit," Shiro says. "We've been on cadet duty all night. Time for a bit of a break."

Allura bites her lip, and a slow smile spreads over her face. "Alright."

They gather up the food and wine and go out the back door, to the patio that overlooks the extensive back garden. A short flight of stone steps leads down to a lawn, strung with coloured lights for the party, and there's some bushes and mature trees a little further back. Shiro leads Allura down the steps and along a paved path to a gazebo near the back hedge, far enough away from the house that the sound of music fades to a faint background thrum. The lights of the property illuminate the lawns and gardens, and it's blessedly peaceful and quiet out here after the chaos of the party.

They sit on the bench in the gazebo, the plate of food between them, and Shiro pours the wine into the cups and hands one to Allura to taste. She contemplates it carefully, and then nods her approval.

"It's very pleasant," she says.

"You like it?"

"Am I drunk now?"

Shiro laughs at the expression on her face, and shakes his head. "You need to have a lot more than that. Although I don't know about Altean tolerances, so maybe not, I guess."

"According to Romelle, our tolerances are about the same," Allura says. "And Romelle tried it with something very strong, so I trust her judgement."

"Do you want to get drunk?" Shiro asks.

She breaks off a piece of cookie and puts it in her mouth whilst she considers the question.

"Perhaps one day. As an experiment. Tonight? No."

"It's fun. Sort of."

"I've heard. But… I'd rather sit and talk to you, and actually pay attention to what you're saying."

She smiles at him, and there's a flush of red in her cheeks, and Shiro's whole chest goes warm. She's blushing. She likes his company. On top of all her other amazing qualities, she apparently enjoys being around him. Shiro hasn't felt this good about himself in a long time.

This is turning into the best party he's ever been to.

They sit on the bench and eat the food and share the wine, and Allura tells him stories about her training on Altea, as the moon rises and the air grows cool, and the party passes them by. They should go back inside at some point - go and check on the cadets, make sure no one's breaking things or throwing up - but Shiro can't bring himself to leave the garden. He just can't tear himself away from Allura.

She holds out her cup for more wine, and Shiro pours her some. She doesn't seem particularly drunk. They've both had enough to be pleasantly buzzed, but all it's doing is making Shiro brave. Maybe it's doing the same for Allura. She reaches up to push his bangs away from his forehead, and he catches her hand, and she glances down at their fingers, loosely entwined. He took her hand with his prosthetic, and a sudden spike of anxiety makes him recoil. But she grips his fingers before he can pull away, and he lets out a breath.

"Can I… can I ask you about this?" she says.

He meets her gaze. Her eyes are warm and gentle, without any trace of discomfort, even though she's holding his metal fingers. Maybe it doesn't bother her.

"Sure," he says. He braces for the usual questions. Was it an accident? Yes. How did it happen? A mission gone wrong. Does it hurt? Sometimes, but not as much as it did. His heart sinks as he imagines the look of pity Allura will give him. He hates that. People have all sorts of weird reactions to it, and the last thing he wants is to sit here as she tells him he was 'so brave' or whatever.

But to his surprise, she doesn't ask anything like that.

"Can you feel this?" she says. She runs her fingers over his palm, and he watches the gentle movement of her hand, and his heart aches.

"A little bit," he tells her. "It's like being touched through several layers of clothing. There's some sensors in the prosthetic for feedback, but it's not very sophisticated."

She hums softly, and traces lines on his metal palm and wrist.

"Do you mind me touching it?"

"No," he whispers. "Of course not."

She looks up at him and smiles, and in the softness of her gaze he senses no trace of pity - only kindness and understanding.

"I did some work with prosthetics, back on Altea," she says. "Our technology is far advanced of yours, of course. But I could take a look at your arm, if you like? I mean… If you're interested in making improvements, or if it gives you problems, or you want..."

She trails off, and pulls her hand back.

"I'm sorry, I don't mean to be insensitive."

"You're not." Shiro reaches for her hand again, and runs his thumb over her knuckles. "I'd love to see what Altean technology can do to improve this. It's great, don't get me wrong, but… I miss being able to really feel things."

"Our engineering could help with that, if you want," Allura says. "And I know how excited you get about alien technology."

Shiro laughs, and a weight eases from his chest. She's teasing him. The prosthetic doesn't bother her in the slightest. She's not giving him pitying looks. This is all working out so much better than he expected.

"I get very excited," he says. "Especially if it's you explaining it."

Allura grins, and he lets her play with his fingers, and doesn't even consider pulling his hand away.

## +

Lance mooches around the games room. He's in a mood. Hunk and Kinkade ruined his talk with Allura earlier, and now his head feels groggy, probably because Keith poisoned the pizza pockets or something. It's definitely not the alcohol, because he can handle that. He's a man. An adult. Allura is stupid if she can't see that.

He's not sure how, but everything that's gone wrong tonight is Keith's fault. Keith sabotaged him. He just _had_ to go and invite Shiro to this. Stupid Shiro and his stupid space obsession. Stupid Keith and his ugly mullet. This night is a disaster.

The worst part is, Hunk and Kinkade don't even care. They're busy playing pool and dancing to the music, and having a great time. The betrayal cuts deep. Here's Lance, nursing a broken heart, having his night ruined, and his friends are just having a nice time!

He spots Keith across the room, and glares at him. Keith glares back, and Lance flips him off. Fucking _Keith_. He stumbles over to the drinks table and finds another bottle of beer, and when he turns around Keith is behind him giving him some kind of death glare, his arms folded across his skinny chest.

"What's your problem, birthday boy?" Lance asks. Has his voice always been this loud? Everyone's staring at him, but he doesn't care. He's about to teach Keith a lesson.

"Why did you even come to this if you're gonna cuss me out, asshole?" Keith demands. "You ruined my night!"

"_I_ ruined _your_ night?" Lance says, his voice rising in both pitch and volume with every word. "Your stupid big brother stole my date!"

"He's not my brother! And your date is the one who won't leave him alone!"

"Hey, come on, guys…" Hunk says, but Lance ignores him. He shoves Keith in the chest.

"Your brother is a creep! I was going to spend the whole night with Allura before Shiro came along! Why'd you have to bring him?"

Keith shoves him back, and Lance stumbles back into the drinks table, accompanied by a chorus of 'oooohhs' from the other cadets.

"Why'd you have to invite Allura?" Keith demands. "I was going to talk to Shiro! We were supposed to-- it doesn't matter! This is your fault!"

"_My_ fault? Why you little--"

Lance charges at Keith, and the two of them go tumbling to the ground, yelling and slapping at each other. Lance is gonna wipe the dumb smile off his face, just you wait. He ignores Hunk and Kinkade, who try to pull them apart; he ignores the voices in the rest of the room telling him to stop. He's going to teach Keith a lesson.

He gets in a few good blows before a hand closes on the back of his collar.

"Lance!" Veronica's voice cuts through the fog in his brain. "What the hell is wrong with you?"

She hauls him off of Keith, and stands there and glares down at both of them, hands on her hips. Lance risks a look at Keith. He's dabbing at his bleeding nose, and his clothes are all over the place. Lance's ribs ache, and his eye is starting to swell up, but that's okay. He clearly won. Look at stupid Keith and his stupid nose bleed! Hah!

"Do I need to put you both in a fucking time out?" Veronica demands, and Lance deflates. If he's in time out he can't talk to Allura.

"No, we're just messing around," he says.

"I'm not going in time out," Keith mutters. "This is my birthday party!"

"You're both cut off," Veronica says. "That means no more beers or drinks of any kind! Water only from now on, the pair of you. And Lance? You can stay late and help me clean up."

Lance groans, and Keith shoves him in the arm - but Veronica gives them another glare, and Keith backs off.

"Sorry, Vee," Kinkade says. "We tried to stop them…"

"You're fine, Ryan, don't worry about it," Vee says. "Oh and Lance? You might need some ice for that black eye."

## +

Allura doesn't want tonight to ever end. The more she gets to know Shiro, the more she finds herself hopelessly falling for him. How can one person be everything she's ever wanted in a partner - everything she so desperately needs right now? The part of her heart that's still bruised by betrayal worries that there's some catch, somewhere; but so far, she can't find it. Shiro's perfect. _Beyond_ perfect. She's already found an excuse to give him her number, and another excuse to take a picture with him ("I've never been to a house party before, help me document it!"). They've talked about things they might do together, like working on his prosthetic or taking some trips to see Earth's cultural sites. The future is suddenly alight with possibilities.

She longs to know if he's feeling this, too. Every slight touch makes her breathless. He looks at her and she feels fire burning through her veins. Is he feeling this? Does he want it too?

It's ridiculous. They've only known each other a few hours. She should be sensible about this.

On the other hand, when you feel this connected to someone, the sensible thing - surely - is to act on it immediately and not let the feeling pass. Right? For the sake of science. An inter-species romance would provide her with a wealth of valuable research data, and also, hopefully, a lot of really excellent sex with the hottest man she's ever met, human or otherwise. It's win-win. Why wait?

She drains her cup of wine and puts it down on the empty plate between them. The wine makes her feel a little giddy, but it's not an unpleasant sensation. If anything, it adds to the magical feeling of tonight.

"You want some more?" Shiro asks.

"No, thank you." They've finished the bottle between them, and Shiro is also looking rather flushed, and he keeps grinning at her and leaning into her personal space. He's getting more adorable by the minute.

She gets up and steps out of the gazebo and onto the lawn. The night air is chill on her skin, but the stars are out, and Earth's single moon rises gently into the sky - a silver disc that casts a soft glow over the gardens. Allura gazes up at the starscape above her, so different from the skies of Altea. Earth's sky is always so blue. She feels Shiro step up beside her, and smiles.

"You like the stars?" he asks quietly.

"Always," she murmurs. "It's wonderful being able to see them from the surface of the planet."

"There's a lot of light pollution in a neighbourhood like this," Shiro says. "You can't see them very well."

"This is nothing compared to Altea. When you look up at night, all you see is lights. Buildings. Ships. We have great structures that surround the whole planet, and you can see the rings in the sky. Earth is so different. So simple, by comparison."

"We must seem like a very simple species, to your eyes."

She looks away from the stars, and meets his gaze. "Sometimes. But your people are smart. You're brave. You venture up into the cosmos in the simplest of ships, because you can't stand to look at the stars and not reach for them. It's rather beautiful, when you think about it."

"Wow," Shiro breathes. He looks at her like he's mesmerised. Maybe he is. He turns to the sky with wonder in his gaze, and she aches to reach out and touch him - this astronaut who dreams of the mysteries of the universe, and won't let anything hold him down.

A breeze cools the garden, and Allura shivers slightly. The pleasant warmth of the evening has given way to the chill of the night, and Allura doesn't have a jacket. Shiro notices her shivering, and takes a step closer to her.

"Do you want to go inside?" he asks. He rubs at her arms and shoulders, and Allura feels heat building inside her. It's impossible to feel truly cold with Shiro this close to her, his hands on her skin, his eyes burning into her.

"No," she whispers. "I like it out here."

Shiro smiles. His hands slow in their movements, so that instead of rubbing warmth into her body, he's now gently stroking her bare shoulders. Allura rests her hands on his chest, and feels his heartbeat under her palm. Their eyes meet, and he licks his lips. His hands go still.

"Sorry," he says. "I should, uh--"

"You should keep doing what you're doing," Allura says, because she doesn't want him to stop, ever. His left hand glides up her shoulder to her neck, his thumb brushing her throat, and his touch is like a shower of sparks cascading over her skin.

"What is it I'm doing, exactly?" he asks, as if seeking permission. There's hope in his eyes; soft promises in the tickle of his fingers against the nape of her neck. Stars above, she needs this man like air.

"Well… I _hope_ you're flirting," Allura says. "Because that's what I've been doing. Most of the night."

His face splits into a delighted grin, and he chuckles.

"I may have been flirting a little bit." Allura arches an eyebrow at him, and he laughs again, and rests his forehead against hers. "Okay. A lot."

"And you should keep doing it," Allura says, her smile matching his own.

His right hand slides down her arm until he curls his fingers into her palm.

"Will it cause a major diplomatic incident if I kiss you right now?" he asks, his voice a murmur that sends Allura's pulse racing. The need for him blossoms in her core like flames leaping into the dark, and she tilts her head, her eyes on his lips.

"Why don't you kiss me and find out?" She looks up into his eyes, dark and fierce and beautiful, and his lips twist as he holds down his smile. His gaze darts sideways, to the lights of the house - the lit-up windows overlooking the lawn, and the shapes of people moving around inside. They're out in the open where anyone could walk past and see. Shiro bites his lip. He grasps Allura's hand and tugs her gently away, away from the prying eyes of the house and its many windows, towards the back of the garden. He pulls her through a gap in the hedge; down three stone steps to a sunken garden, surrounded by trees, where fragrant white flowers cling delicately to trailing vines. A single, golden-hued lantern peeks out between the leaves, and the only other light is the moon that hangs above them, blessing them with silver radiance.

Allura giggles, breathless and giddy - not just from the wine. Shiro is an intoxication all on his own. Here, in this hidden garden, he slides a hand around her waist and pulls her close. He's no longer trying to hide how much he wants to hold her, and the feeling of being so wanted by him is almost overwhelming. Allura wraps her arms around him; she brushes the tip of her nose against his, making him grin, and his thumb strokes against her lower lip. She pulls him in, and he needs no further encouragement.

Their lips meet, and his kiss is a heated, sinful thing; a questing exploration of her mouth that sets Allura's whole body alight. She clings to him, fingers scrabbling at his t-shirt, and their tongues collide in a burst of warmth and desire; he groans, the sound rumbling through her, his arms holding her close to his chest. He breaks away; gazes at her for one breathless, desperate second; and then kisses her again, so that they melt into each other in the moonlight.

Finally, she pulls back so she can catch her breath. Shiro gazes at her in undisguised amazement, and he's so soft and sweet that she presses her hand to his cheek, tears shimmering in her eyes.

"I've waited all night to do that," she breathes.

"Me too," Shiro grins. He runs his thumb over the mark on Allura's cheek, just under her eye. "You're glowing."

"That's because I really like kissing you."

Allura glances around. There's a wall behind her that borders a flower bed of some kind, and she takes Shiro's hand and pulls him towards it. She hoists herself up onto the wall with ease, and Shiro looks at her quizzically until she snags his t-shirt and pulls him over to stand between her knees. Like this, their faces are level. Shiro runs his hands up her thighs as he steps closer, and Allura puts both arms around his neck and smirks at him.

"Oh, I see," he says. "Very handy."

He kisses her again, but before he can get really into it, she puts her fingers on his chin and pushes him back.

"I have a technical question," she whispers.

"What's that?" His eyes are still fixed on her mouth, and he chews his lip and edges closer, as if craving the proximity of their bodies.

"Does this still count as a house party if we're not in the house?" Allura asks.

Shiro laughs, and presses a kiss to the fingers that hold him back.

"It still counts," he says. "House and grounds. It's implied."

"it's not a garden party? We're in the garden."

"Oh no, a garden party is something different." His left hand skims up her back, under her top, his palm claiming the curves of her shoulder blades like an explorer laying claim to the map. Allura bites her lip. Stalling him with silly questions was an excellent idea on her part. It's forcing him to get creative.

"A garden party is something classy," he goes on. "High tea and people in hats. That kind of thing."

"Sounds fancy."

Shiro hums, his hand still pressed to her back. He ducks away from the fingers that Allura still has on his chin, and tucks his head into her shoulder. His lips find the line of her jaw; he presses kisses to her neck, until she gasps and clutches at his hair.

"I like this garden party better," he murmurs, his breath hot against the damp marks of his kisses, and Allura shivers delightedly and pulls him closer.

"I'm guessing the regular kind doesn't have this much kissing," she whispers.

He nuzzles at her neck, and she laughs and lifts his head up so she can see him smile back at her. His eyes are lovely in the darkness, reflecting the silver of the moon, and Allura takes a moment to admire him. How can he already look at her so fondly, after just a few hours' acquaintance? How is she already so helplessly under his spell?

He pulls her into another kiss, and it occurs to her that the why and how doesn't matter. Here, in the moonlit garden, she would rather just fall into him, and let the rest of it work itself out tomorrow.

## +

Keith sits in the kitchen, a wad of tissue up his nose to stop the bleeding, and glares at Lance. Hunk is currently administering an icepack to Lance's left eye. After their scuffle in the games room, they both needed some first aid, and Hunk is the only person patient enough to provide it.

Stupid Lance and his stupid crush on stupid Allura. He's ruined _everything_.

"Are you guys going to shake hands and make up?" Hunk asks.

Lance pouts, and Keith rolls his eyes.

"Whatever," he mutters. "I don't care. I'm going to find Shiro."

"Yeah, well, I'm going to find Allura," Lance declares. He shoves Hunk's hand aside and stands up, just as Keith also gets to his feet. Hunk throws up his arms in exasperation.

"Fine. Whatever. You wanna go find Shiro and Allura, fine. They're probably together, since they've been joined at the hip all night."

"That's why we have to find them," Lance says. "We have to separate them!"

"That's the only sensible thing you've said all night," Keith says.

"Great! Looks like you two are a team, then," Hunk says. He tosses the ice pack in the sink and wanders off, muttering to himself all the way out of the kitchen, leaving Keith and Lance glaring at each other.

"We're not a team," Keith declares. "Let's just be clear on that."

"Agreed," Lance says. "We're not a team. We're going to look for Shiro and Allura, _separately_."

"Fine."

"_Fine_."

Keith looks around at the kitchen. Come to think of it, he hasn't seen either Shiro or Allura since he followed Shiro down to the cellar.

"So, do you have any idea…?" he asks.

Lance shrugs. "Last I saw them, Allura was in the kitchen getting a plate of food."

"I saw Shiro getting some wine from the cellar."

Their eyes meet. Keith looks around at the back door - unlocked, and slightly open.

"The garden lights are on," he says. "They're motion sensitive. Do you think they went outside?"

Lance pushes past him and plasters his face to the glass panels of the back door.

"That's Allura's purse on the bench!" he yells. "They _are_ outside!"

He wrenches the door open and heads out across the lawn, and Keith yells and chases after him. No way is he gonna let Lance beat him. He leaps down the patio steps and shoves Lance in the shoulder as he runs past. Lance growls and tugs at his t-shirt, and Keith curses at him to get off. He runs up the steps of the gazebo and takes in the empty wine bottle, the plate of mostly-finished food, and the two disposable cups. Lance runs up beside him and grabs at the purse on the bench.

"This is Allura's!"

"Well, don't go through it like a weirdo." Keith slaps Lance's hand, and he drops the bag back down and looks around.

"Where are they?" Lance demands of the garden in general. "Did Shiro kidnap her?"

"What kind of guy do you think he is?" Keith shoots back. "He's not like that. They probably just… wandered off somewhere."

He looks around at the dewy lawn, and the disturbance of the grass. There's another light on, in the sunken garden - he can just make out the glow of it through the hedge. That one's motion activated, too.

"They went this way," he says, and Lance trots up after him, impatient as ever. They reach the hedge at the same time, and after a brief scuffle they push through and descend into the sunken garden.

Keith stops. Lance barrels into his back, swears loudly, and then takes in why Keith stopped, and swears again.

Well. They've found Shiro and Allura, at least.

Allura is sitting on a wall, her legs wrapped around Shiro's waist and one hand up his t-shirt, and they're… making out? But… but… This is impossible. And yet here they are, sucking face in the garden, completely oblivious to anyone but each other.

"What the _fuck_?!" Lance yells.

Shiro jerks away from Allura, and they both turn, faces flushed, eyes half-lidded, to take in Lance and Keith standing by the hedge and staring at them. Shiro clears his throat and swiftly retracts his hand from under Allura's top, but he makes no move to step away from her. Why is he…? How…? But…? What the _fuck_?

"Oh. Hey, Keith," Shiro says. "What's up, buddy?"

"Is everything okay?" Allura asks, rather breathlessly.

Whilst Keith is still trying to get his mouth to work, Lance is already up and running in his self-righteous outrage.

"Allura, how could you?" he cries. "You're _my_ date!"

Allura's eyes go wide. "I am?" she asks, in a tone so incredulous Keith might feel like laughing at Lance's expense, were it not for the precise circumstances of Lance's humiliation and how they blowback on him, specifically.

"I was going to ask you to by my girlfriend!" Lance wails. "Allura… I'm in love with you. I got you a Promise Rose and everything!"

He pulls a single rose out of the inside pocket of his jacket. The various dramas of the night have left it a little the worse for the wear, and several of the petals are wilting and falling off. Lance holds it out like some kind of talisman, and makes beseeching puppy-eyes at Allura, who just looks awkward.

"Oh… Lance… that's so… sweet," she manages. "Thank you. But… I just… don't feel that way about you, I'm sorry."

Shiro presses a fist to his mouth and coughs again, and Keith bristles.

"Shiro, can I talk to you, please?" he blurts out.

Shiro doesn't move. He looks from Keith to Allura, still scandalously close to him, and then back to Keith again.

"Can it wait?" he asks mildly.

Keith stares at him, completely deflated. A dozen possible lines circle in his head, but the only thing he can think to say out loud is: "I thought you were gay?"

Shiro's brow furrows into a disappointed frown - an expression that Keith is all too familiar with from his younger Garrison days. Shiro takes a half-step away from Allura, but he stays close enough to keep his hands on her thighs, and her hand is still in his hair, and everything about this makes Keith want to crawl into a hole and die. Seriously. Shiro was supposed to be secretly in love with _him_. Not… making out with aliens in the back yard. What the _hell_.

"Keith, I'm not going to go another round of 'is bisexuality real' with you, okay?" Shiro says, his voice edged in carefully-repressed annoyance. "Do you need me to come back to the house? Is everything okay?"

"No! I just-- I mean, I wanted to say… You mean a lot to me, and I uhm… I was hoping we could…"

Shiro stares at him, his expression growing more perplexed with every word, and Keith trails off. After Lance's spectacular crash and burn, he's not going to make it a two-for-one special by confessing his feelings for Shiro. He has _some_ pride.

"It's nothing," he mutters. He grabs Lance by the collar, and pulls him towards the hedge. "We'll leave you two alone, I guess."

He heads up the steps and back onto the lawn, cheeks burning red, fuming at the injustice of the world. As they go, he thinks he hears Shiro snorting with laughter.

## +

"Your date? Really?" Shiro asks, and Allura collapses into giggles.

"I didn't know that's what he meant!" she protests.

"Should I be jealous?" Shiro laughs. "I didn't get you a Promise Rose, I'm so sorry."

"Stop!" Allura clings to him, shoulders shaking, as she fights back another round of uncontrollable laughter. The sight of Lance offering up a single, bruised rose as evidence of his affections was too much for both of them. Although what Keith was doing in the garden is anyone's guess.

"Are you sure you don't want to ditch me for him?" Shiro asks, and Allura shoves him playfully in the chest.

"No way," she chuckles. "He's a kid. Come on."

Shiro grins at her, and settles his hands back on her waist. She sits on the wall and smiles at him, her arms loosely draped around his neck, the crescents on her cheeks still faintly glowing. Just when he thought she couldn't get any more mesmerising, she lit up like starlight under his touch. She looks like some holy, sacred thing, and the only way to worship her is with his hands and his lips; with needy touches against the heat of her skin; gasps sent up into the air like prayers to the heavens.

He gave up on love. But she is going to make him believe in it again. He can feel it.

"We probably should go back inside the house," he says reluctantly.

"We have left Vee alone for a long time," Allura agrees, although she makes no move to get off the wall, or to let go of him.

"Plus I'm pretty sure Lance had a black eye," Shiro adds. "Maybe we should find out why."

"I suppose so," Allura sighs. "Help me down?"

Shiro obliges, and lifts her off the wall, and she takes a moment to straighten her clothes and dust the dirt from her jeans. This is it, then. Back to looking after bratty kids.

"So, listen, do you want to--" Shiro begins, at the same time as Allura says: "You know, we could--"

They both stop. Shiro looks down at Allura's expression - at the hope in her eyes, and the flush in her cheeks. That's for him. That look - that softness, that longing - that's for _him_. He can hardly believe it, but it's true.

"Sorry," he says. "What were you…?"

"I just… wanted to say that tonight was really fun," she says. She chews her lip and looks up at him with twinkling eyes, impossibly blue and pink.

"Oh? Which part? The talking about space or the 'garden party'?"

She laughs softly, and reaches for his hand.

"Both," she says. "I enjoy spending time with you. And… kissing you in the bushes."

Shiro bites back a grin. "Well, we could… do this again sometime, if you like? Both parts, I mean. We could meet up when we're not babysitting a party full of drunken delinquents. What do you think?"

"I'd love to," she says, and Shiro's heart soars all the way up to the stars.

"How about tomorrow?" she asks, so sweetly hopeful, so perfectly eager to see him again. "What are you doing tomorrow?"

_Laundry, meal prep, seeing his brother, answering some emails…_

"Nothing," Shiro says, mentally erasing his schedule from existence. "We can do something tomorrow if you want."

"Can we go for brunch?" Allura asks. "I keep hearing people talk about it, but I haven't tried it yet."

"Sure," Shiro says. Then, feeling brave, he adds: "It's a date."

Allura grins, and rises up on tiptoes to kiss him on the lips. He leans into it, because he doesn't think he can hold out until tomorrow unless he kisses her a few more times tonight. The way she melts into it sets Shiro's soul alight, and he pulls her close and holds her, and tastes infinite sweet promises in the curve of her lips.

"What happened to going back inside the house?" Allura asks, when he pulls away to catch his breath.

"It can wait," Shiro whispers, and in the light of the moon, he pulls her back into another perfect, blissful kiss.

**Author's Note:**

> my first fic in months and it's a glorified shitpost. oh well. real life has been busy, lads. that's all i can say.
> 
> the idea behind this AU is that Allura is trying to get past a really horrible relationship with Lotor, and Shiro has had a bad break-up with Adam over Shiro's accident and the loss of his arm. i've also always been fascinated at the idea of Alteans coming to Earth to make first contact, and that being a part of how the Garrison gets into space and how the team finds Voltron. i've used this same idea for a couple of other fics too. in this AU i'd take different Paladins on the adventure, though. prolly Kinkade and Veronica and maybe Romelle.
> 
> btw the Romelle in this fic is based on Breezy's Romelle design, which you can find on tumblr [here](https://breezycheezyart.tumblr.com/post/185184017143/i-finally-got-around-to-designing-a-formal).


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